Entrepreneurial loan officers want to push themselves. They want to expand their business, grow in their careers, and reach new levels of success. There’s no doubt that an investment of time, energy, and hard work will help you get there. But sometimes, when loan officers get out of balance and put too much into their work, it can backfire. For those highly driven professionals with ambitious goals and strong determination, sometimes doing a bit less can be more beneficial than taking on more. Here’s why:
Ditch Busy
Loan officers who are constantly pushing themselves to the max, adding more to their plates, and packing their schedules every day, tend to find themselves operating at a frantic pace. When you’ve reached that point, it’s usually a red flag. Consistently working in a rushed mode isn’t efficient. Sure, you want to be speedy and move through your day productively, but when you’re in overdrive, your productivity tends to take a hit. Loan officers need to find their edge here — that point before feeling frantic and busy where they can work efficiently at their peak. If you’re already in that hectic state on a regular basis, it might be time to evaluate if there’s something you can take off your list.
Recharge
Another reason why doing less can power loan officers’ success is because it creates time to recharge. When your day is completely full, you don’t have windows for your body and mind to recharge. We all know how it feels to be working on something when we’re exhausted. Typically, energy and focus are low. It can take double, triple, or more to finish a project in this state as opposed to when we work at our best. You set yourself up to accomplish more by taking time to decompress.
Maintain High Performance
Something else that can suffer when we do too much is our performance. Fitting more on the to-do list isn’t worth it if it’s causing you to slack on quality. When we ask ourselves to do too much, it’s understandable that we often find ourselves rushing or working through exhaustion. Neither of these states supports high-quality work. Find that place where your plate is full and you’re still able to give every item your best.
Prioritize
We might think that we’re striving for success by saying yes to everything and always taking on more work, but often, it’s a sign that we don’t know how to prioritize. Learning to prioritize our work is a valuable skill that takes practice to refine. When we keep taking on more and more, we usually aren’t looking at the bigger picture. Instead, step back. Look at the top 3 to 5 things you want to accomplish today. Start there, and realistically carve out the time you’ll need to complete them in your schedule. Then, you can start filling in the gaps with additional work. You might find that some items don’t make the cut. But if you’ve prioritized effectively, that won’t interfere with your success.
While there’s no substitute for hard work and dedication, sometimes highly driven loan officers need to be reminded that doing too much can backfire. The key here is finding the balance, and that balance will look different for everyone. It’s about finding your edge and operating at that place, without tipping too far in either direction. Two things to remember… (1) Say “no” to low priority tasks more often, and (2) Sometimes less really is more! So how do you find your edge? Please share your thoughts.
Kirk Brewer
Branch Manager | The Loan Geek | NMLS #150287